photo by: Lawrence Police Department

Lawrence Police officers train with shotgun bean bag rounds on July 22, 2022, at the Lawrence Police Department. The shotguns have been modified with orange paint to denote that they are only to be loaded with the bean bag rounds.

The Lawrence Police Department has made a full transition from traditional patrol shotguns to a less lethal “beanbag” option, the department announced this week.

LPD’s old shotguns, which were commonly used beginning in the 1970s, are now all retired, and officers will complete training on the less lethal shotgun this week, LPD said in a news release. Personnel who become certified on the new shotguns will be required to qualify annually.

“When they’re able, officers already utilize safer compliance options such as pepper spray and tasers, so this decision was essentially a no-brainer,” Lawrence Police Chief Rich Lockhart said on social media Thursday. “No one wants an incident with a deadly outcome; not the police, not the community, and certainly not the person in crisis nor that person’s family.”

Many departments nationwide have transitioned to the less lethal guns, LPD noted.

“Since I began my journey to reimagine policing in Lawrence, I knew this change would take place,” Lockhart said.

Traditional tools like batons, tasers and pepper spray remain available, but those require close range, increasing danger and decreasing time for de-escalation, the department noted. Less lethal shotguns deploy a drag-stabilized beanbag from ranges up to 75 feet, which can give officers time and distance to make better tactical decisions than is permitted during face-to-face encounters. They also look different from a regular shotgun, as they have an orange fore-end and stock.

Tools like the beanbag shotgun are designated for use, according to LPD policy, when a person is armed and the circumstances allow for the safe use of less lethal rounds, when the subject has made credible threats of self-harm or harm to others, during riotous behavior in which dangerous projectiles are being thrown at officers or others, or when there is probable cause to believe the person has already committed a violent crime and is refusing to comply with lawful orders.